Corporal John Metson was wounded in both ankles at the Battle of Isurava. He was cut off during the withdrawal and linked with a group of 50 Diggers trying to work their way around the enemy to rejoin their comrades. Metson refused to let his mates carry him. Instead he wrapped his hands and knees in rags and he crawled for three weeks through the jungle.
Metson was one of eight wounded left behind in a friendly village in the hope the main group could quickly regain their lines and send help.
When the group finally made it back to the Australian lines and sent a patrol to rescue Metson and the wounded, they found they had been betrayed to the Japanese and murdered.
Metson was posthumously awarded the British Empire Medal for his bravery.
Our Kokoda Diggers are all in their 90s and they’re fading. We can’t let their stories fade with them....
Renowned cameraman Paul Croll and Patrick Lindsay have started pre-production on a feature-length documentary called Kokoda … the spirit lives.
Help us tell John's story.